Member Article

Auto enrolment in 2016? Plan now

Company bosses whose businesses will be required to provide auto enrolment pensions from 2016 should start planning now, according to chartered accountants and business advisers Waltons Clark Whitehill.

By January 2016, the phasing in of auto enrolment will have reached companies with fewer than 30 employees.

However, the Hartlepool-based firm says those responsible for the pension provision within companies need to be planning at least 12 months in advance of their staging dates.

Some companies with 30 employees or less will have staging dates from June 2015, dependent upon the last two characters of their PAYE reference.

Heather O’Driscoll, Managing Director of Waltons Clark Whitehill, said: “Auto enrolment is one of the biggest changes to pensions legislation in decades, and the responsibility upon employers, especially in smaller businesses which do not necessarily have significant resource in that area, is huge.

“It is these smaller companies which will start to come into auto enrolment in the middle of next year, and they need to start planning now and talking to experts.

“Through our payroll bureau we can provide the administrative support which takes this burden out of the hands of the businesses and helps to guide them through the processes involved. With the additional costs that are involved with establishing the pensions, the last thing many businesses want is to have to take on extra staff to administer the process, but we are able to support with that and help.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Waltons .